


Small Town Cops

by HyperMint



Series: Blond Support Group [1]
Category: Eureka, Haven - Fandom
Genre: AU- Stark not dead, Early Haven S2, F/M, M/M, Possible Eureka spoilers, Possible Haven S1 spoilers, Referred situations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-11-22
Updated: 2011-11-22
Packaged: 2017-10-26 10:06:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/281782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HyperMint/pseuds/HyperMint
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Audrey needs a friend outside of Haven. Jack needs a friend outside of Eureka. Perfect solution.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Small Town Cops

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: Eureka and Haven are owned by whoever owns SyFy programs. I still watch them every season, but I'm very sad Eureka will be in the final season. Until then, I wait for all the Christmas episodes. Hope you do, too.
> 
> Not beta'd.
> 
> Uh, and about the whole time traveling thing on Eureka? Stark didn't die in either reality and this one may like Carter, but I don't really know yet. Good? Good.

Small Town Cops

***

Shaking off the rain, Audrey Parker shuffled through the door of the little bar and let her eyes adjust to the light.

 

It was a nice place. Not much smoke, old-fashioned jukebox on high enough for background noise. Waitresses flitting this way and that, serving up drinks, munchies or food. The decor was tasteful, too. Some country things in there that Duke Crocker (who would deny to his dying day for having a soft spot for country music) might appreciate. Low lighting was accompanied by the seemingly regulation pool tables and some gents over near the television in a friendly game of darts.

 

Hearing her stomach grumble, she double timed it over to the bar and ordered a beer and cheeseburger with fries. Nodding at the ETA of food and handing over her money, Audrey scanned the room for a place to sit and was about to head over to one, when she noticed another blond - this one male - seated a few tables away. Three beers already drained, he was working on a fourth. Her newly found cop instincts made her go over.

 

"Hey, there," she smiled cautiously. "This seat taken?"

 

Blue eyes almost identical to her own looked up. "You should probably know, you're cute, but not my type."

 

"Well, you're not mine, either, so I guess we're in the same boat."

 

She slipped into the seat across from him as he sipped at his beer. "You should know, I'm a cop with the Haven Police Department."

 

"Isn't it outside your jurisdiction?" he quirked a smile. "It's out of mine, that's for sure."

 

"Oh, so you're a cop, too?"

 

"Well, kind of. Jack Carter, Sheriff of Eureka, Oregon."

 

She was about to reciprocate, when she changed her mind and closed her mouth. It had been just two weeks ago, but her partner, Nathan Wournos, had told her that finding out that she was someone who she thought was her mother would take some getting used to.

 

"And when someone introduces themselves," Jack tilted his head questioningly, "it's generally considered good manners to do likewise."

 

"It's complicated," she lifted a shoulder.

 

"Try me."

 

Glancing at him, she shook her head.

 

"Well, at least give me a name to work with."

 

"Lu... Lucy," she wasn't sure how she felt about it, even now. She should probably get used to it. That other Parker would probably take her place, despite numerous reassurances to the contrary. "Lucy Ripley."

 

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Lucy," Jack reached over and they shook hands. "You can call me 'Carter' if you want. A lot of my... well, I guess you could call them friends... do anyway."

 

"Do I detect some dark side to that?" she teased, flagging down her food and drink. She frowned as Carter ordered another. "Tell me you're eating something to wash down that alcohol."

 

"Yeah, I'm getting hungry." He lifted a shoulder, "Maybe when she comes back or something."

 

"So," she continued, munching a fry. "Do you have many friends?"

 

Sighing, he leaned back. "I mean, well, yeah. There's Henry, and Allison... can't forget Jo... Taggert when he's in town... Andy, that's my deputy... Vin, the owner of Cafe Diem... Zane, too, I guess... Fargo is a decent guy when he's not causing trouble and putting the entire town at risk... and Stark... Well, not so much a friend as someone who seems to know when I need to vent and needles me into letting loose on him. Oh, yeah, and Henry's wife, Grace. She's always dropping by the office to make sure I'm eating alright."

 

"Sounds like some interesting folks," she commented, sipping her own beer.

 

"Oh, believe you me, they are. Oh, and SARAH would probably get depressed again if I forgot her."

 

"Significant other?"

 

"Sort of. She's my house."

 

"What? Really?" Audrey smiled at the idea.

 

"Well, I live in a smarthouse and she's pretty cool. Everyone in town is way smarter than I'll ever be."

 

"Hey, don't sell yourself short," Audrey shook her head. "You seem like a smart guy to me."

 

"The entire town is full of _something_ related to science," he huffed. "They just come to me when they've got problems. It doesn't matter what I'm doing at the time. Something goes wrong: Call Carter. Annoying neighbor: Call Carter. Missing experiment: Call Carter. Missing experiment turns up, it's the other guy: Call Carter. It's sabotage: Call Carter. Experiment goes rouge: Call Carter. Experiment blows up: Call Carter. Experiment blows up and is threatening all other life in the universe -"

 

"Call Carter, I get it," Audrey smiled indulgently. "Besides all the science and over-dramatization, sounds like a regular day in Haven. This time, it's usually something that science _can't_ explain."

 

"You obviously haven't been to Eureka," he shook his head, stealing a fry. "If there's an explanation, they'll find it."

 

"Even ripping through the fabric of the space - time continuum to do it, no doubt," she joked, biting into her cheeseburger. She completely missed the look on his face as she savored the amazingly well put together burger.

 

"Yea... You could say that," Carter fiddled with his new drink. "So, what about you? Do you have any friends to vent over?"

 

She shook her head. "Not much in the way of friends, but there's my partner, Nathan, and my friend Duke, and the local newspaper owners, Dave and Vince Teagues."

 

"You have a Nathan, too?" he chuckled. "My Nathan is a jerk. Dr. Nathan Stark. Sometimes I wonder what it's like to be him."

 

"Well, 'my' Nathan has a boatload of issues, too," she smiled. "But I think we'll get through okay."

 

"Do I detect a wistful note in there?" Carter smiled back. "Maybe you feel something other than friendship for your Nathan?"

 

There was the ten grand question. "I really... I can't exactly have a romantic relationship right now. There's too many things going on and it wouldn't feel right to me or him, and never mind the fact that I don't know what he feels about me... Like I said. Complicated."

 

They sat there for awhile. She finished off her food and nursed her beer while he ordered some food as well as a soda.

 

"You said I'm not your type, right?" she thought aloud. "Are you seeing someone, though?"

 

"Nope. No-one but the house waiting for me when I get home."

 

She knowingly studied him. "But you wish there was?"

 

"Yeah," he sighed. "Gets lonely sometimes."

 

"Is there anything your friends can do to help?"

 

He studied her in turn. "I'm starting to think I need friends outside of Eureka. Someone who I can hang out with sometimes, who doesn't have anything to do with the crazy life I lead."

 

Audrey sat back. Suddenly, she pulled out her phone and leaned forward. "What's your number?"

 

"Why?" he gave it.

 

"Give me your phone and I'll put mine in."

 

Carter watched her finish and smile, a light in her eyes. "Lucy?"

 

"We can call each other," she smiled widely, returning his phone. "We can call each other and talk about normal things and maybe meet up every other month or something. Well, what?" she frowned at his look. "Oh, c'mon, Carter! You need a break, I need someone to talk to that doesn't involve my crazy, messed up life and accompanying identity issues, and we can, I don't know, help each other. Be normal."

 

The desperate tone in her voice was picked up on. "It would be nice talking to someone," he said slowly.

 

"Oh, yeah. And we can tell each other fake stories about small towns and what we have to do to keep the peace. It'll be fun."

 

"Like a confidante?"

 

"Or our little support group," Audrey got more enthusiastic about the idea. "Just the two of us."

 

"A support group, huh?"

 

"I'm a cop, you're a cop. Ergo, support group."

 

"Well, put like that..."

 

"Yes!" Audrey grinned, in love with the idea. "My new friend is not a part of Haven," she smiled happily. The idea filled something that she didn't know she was missing. A weight seemed to lift off of her and she drained the rest of her beer. "I'm gonna get another," she flagged down a waitress. "What about you?"

 

"I'm good," he laughed as she did a little victory dance in her seat.

 

"I like talking to you for some reason," she calmed when their orders were placed in front of them some minutes later. "This is going to be great!"

 

"I'm liking the idea more and more," he smiled, warming up to the idea. "But, you know, now that we're friends and all... There's actually something you need to know."

 

Her undivided attention was all his. "I'm all ears. Fire away."

 

"Remember Stark? Dr. Stark? From earlier? Well, I think I might like him."

 

She kept her expectant stare until his words sunk in. "Oh. Like, you like him as a friend that he might not want to be, or like him as in... something else?"

 

"Second," he reluctantly answered, sipping his soda.

 

"Uh-huh. Anything else?"

 

"Pretty sure that's it for now. I'll let you know if I think of anything else later."

 

They both grinned at the implication of future communication. Sobering, she thought long and hard about this. "Actually, I need to tell you something else, too."

 

"Go on."

 

"My name isn't really Lucy," she looked down. "I don't know all the details yet, but I do know that I still have some things to figure out. In the meantime... My name is Audrey. Audrey Parker."

 

"Well, it's nice to meet Audrey, too," he pushed her beer toward her. "Maybe I'll get those details in the future?"

 

"We'll see..."

 

They sat there for another hour. Just getting to know each other a little better. They found out that they used to be government employees (her FBI, him US Marshal's) and other little things about each other. Audrey found out that his daughter was smarter than he was and that he used some sneaky techniques to find out her real score. He was pretty sure she still had no idea. Audrey also found out that he looked over Zane Donovan like his own and that he liked hot cocoa and cupcakes filled with fudge filling and raspberry when he was feeling low.

 

Carter found a kindred spirit in the cupcake department and that she kept a small journal to write down little things that would catch her attention in the course of the day. He also found that she was really trying to fit into the small town lifestyle, but wasn't sure if it was working. After giving him a sample, he shook his head. "Well, no wonder you don't fit in. That sucked."

 

"Hey! I'll have you know that my friend Duke said it was really convincing."

 

"He lied to you."

 

"No, he didn't," she denied, though he was probably right. Taking into account what Duke did for a living and all. She wasn't sure she really wanted to know.

 

"He did. Ask for another opinion."

 

"I will," she scowled. Maybe one of the Teagues brothers could give it to her in a straight answer...

 

She looked around and noticed how late it was getting. "I think it's time to get back to the hotel," she said, really not wanting to leave her new friend.

 

"Me, too."

 

Sighing, she consoled herself with the fact that they had exchanged numbers and went to visit the bathroom. When she returned a few minutes later, she raised an eyebrow at the two shot glasses on the cleared table. "Carter? What's this?"

 

He waited until she returned to her seat. "Just thought we'd make a toast."

 

"To our support group?" she smiled, feeling that warmth at the thought.

 

"Well, I was thinking about it." He held up his glass. "To small town cops."

 

Smiling in return, she clinked their glasses together. "And the secrets they keep."

 

 

 

 


End file.
